We’ve just published the latest issue of Financial Planning Today magazine, the sister publication to Financial Planning Today website. It contains some excellent features and content as ever but one poignant article in the magazine, a case study, reminded me of just how crucial Financial Planning can be.

The Planner Casebook is written by experienced Financial Planner Carla Brown FPFS, managing director of Oakmere Wealth in Cheshire, and I hope I’m not giving too much away by saying the case moved her to tears.

I will not go into too much detail on the case as you can read it here - Financial Planning Today Magazine - but suffice to say it involves a family and the unexpected diagnosis of a serious and subsequently terminal illness for the husband, a young and successful dad.

Carla’s careful handling of the case illustrates the life-changing difference good Financial Planning can make and while the money aspect of the case is important it’s not about the money, it’s about people and planning ahead, what good Financial Planning should be.

Financial Planning involves many elements but perhaps one of the key ones is planning for the unexpected, something underlined by this case. I’m sure it will echo with many readers who have had to work with widows and widowers following a bereavement.

It’s very hard to separate emotion from Financial Planning, almost impossible many will say, but what impressed me most about this case was that Carla managed to stay calm and empathetic throughout a huge emotional rollercoaster. She was the rock her friend and client clung to and the outcome is evident.

It’s hard to imagine what the client would have done without her Financial Planner to lean on. Perhaps the best testament for good Financial Planning.

• You can now subscribe to Financial Planning Today magazine to enjoy a host of benefits. Click here for details: Financial Planning Today Magazine 

Kevin O’Donnell is editor of Financial Planning Today and a financial journalist with 30 years experience.  This topical comment on the Financial Planning news appears most weeks. Follow @FPT_Kevin